Prison Pete
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Christmas Eve in prison.
So this is Christmas! I have tried to hide from it. Reading the Killing the Shadows book is a great diversion, but...
It is 4:00 PM or so and dinner will be here shortly. I actually received one Christmas card along with $25 from some friends of my parents. It was really heartwarming to know they took the time and trouble to see that I got the card.
I also received a letter (via Mom and Dad) from my friend Dave who I think is still doing Federal time. He is a former state prison guard, so his comments about standing up to evil are from years of firsthand knowledge. He is actually serving state time but is in the Feds for his own protection.
The odd part is that my Dad went through the motions of mailing Dave’s letter to me, but he did not bother to send me a Christmas card. I have only received two letters from them since I have been here in the county jail. Yeah, I know, I am the bad seed.
I am basically writing this letter to capture my thoughts for posterity. I am not sure of your desire to read them but I ask that you not take them personally.
I am operating in the dark having not heard from you in a while. Again, I am not holding you responsible for my funk, but it is sort of awkward writing to you. I hope it is not pissing you off further if you are somehow really done dealing with me. Yet as I hope to still write about my experience someday, you are the only one I can write to.
The TV is on the Green Bay/Vikings game and Christmas Eve dinner is done. Dinner was a salmon patty. Luckily my clogged nose limits the aroma, but some of the smell still got through. I should have had the usual and mixed my mackerel with the rice. Oh well, you win some, you lose some, and some you get pissed on.
So I feel a little better just writing out my feelings. The Killing the Shadows book has lots of uplifting relationship stuff male/female-wise, and maybe some day I will be able to use some of it. Who knows?
Leaving Club Fed when I did, I have essentially missed all Christmas music except for the stupid use of same on the TV commercials. I would certainly have heard the Messiah, Prairie Home Companion's pre-Christmas shows, the Winter Solstice show broadcast from St. John the Divine in NYC. Tonight I would have tried to catch the midnight mass from St. Patrick’s that usually was on one of the NYC AM stations. In addition, the WV public FM stations would carry one or two Christmas Eve services live too. But instead I have football and ONE Christmas card.
I do have my commissary with the "sausage" and cheese I ordered. I have to be sure not to pig out too much. For some reason I ordered four M&M’s which will only allow me one a day from Friday through Monday. I do have two Kit Kats, but I did not order the cookies. I do not know what I was thinking.
Of course I cannot just run out to 7-Eleven and pick up some more party supplies. Some soda would be nice, but as your Dad used to say, "It’s poor man’s Gatorade for me." Ah, where is the eggnog?
I now realize that I have essentially had a clogged nose since I arrived here. Maybe I should try to get some antibiotic since it may be a sinus infection. Maybe I am just allergic to jail! Ha ha!
Today on TV we had Jerry Springer and Maury Povich shows for four straight hours. I managed to doze off for a couple of hours only to awaken to the football game. So now that chow is done, the next thing will be our Rec at 7:30 PM. I will probably just take a shower and come back and lie down. I am not sure what they will put on TV, but I do not have hope of it being anything worth watching.
So let me read some more. I will also write a thank you note to my parent's friends and I might write a note to Dave. Since he is in Fedville, I need to keep out direct references to what is going on.
It is 11:30 PM or so. and I ate the sausage and cheese. It was not Prosciutto and fresh mozzarella, but it is the thought that counts. Yeah, right.
So now in the silence that occurs here each night I will read and probably finish the last of Killing the Shadows. Christmas Eve reading it is not, but then again it does not really feel much like Christmas right now.
It is 4:00 PM or so and dinner will be here shortly. I actually received one Christmas card along with $25 from some friends of my parents. It was really heartwarming to know they took the time and trouble to see that I got the card.
I also received a letter (via Mom and Dad) from my friend Dave who I think is still doing Federal time. He is a former state prison guard, so his comments about standing up to evil are from years of firsthand knowledge. He is actually serving state time but is in the Feds for his own protection.
The odd part is that my Dad went through the motions of mailing Dave’s letter to me, but he did not bother to send me a Christmas card. I have only received two letters from them since I have been here in the county jail. Yeah, I know, I am the bad seed.
I am basically writing this letter to capture my thoughts for posterity. I am not sure of your desire to read them but I ask that you not take them personally.
I am operating in the dark having not heard from you in a while. Again, I am not holding you responsible for my funk, but it is sort of awkward writing to you. I hope it is not pissing you off further if you are somehow really done dealing with me. Yet as I hope to still write about my experience someday, you are the only one I can write to.
The TV is on the Green Bay/Vikings game and Christmas Eve dinner is done. Dinner was a salmon patty. Luckily my clogged nose limits the aroma, but some of the smell still got through. I should have had the usual and mixed my mackerel with the rice. Oh well, you win some, you lose some, and some you get pissed on.
So I feel a little better just writing out my feelings. The Killing the Shadows book has lots of uplifting relationship stuff male/female-wise, and maybe some day I will be able to use some of it. Who knows?
Leaving Club Fed when I did, I have essentially missed all Christmas music except for the stupid use of same on the TV commercials. I would certainly have heard the Messiah, Prairie Home Companion's pre-Christmas shows, the Winter Solstice show broadcast from St. John the Divine in NYC. Tonight I would have tried to catch the midnight mass from St. Patrick’s that usually was on one of the NYC AM stations. In addition, the WV public FM stations would carry one or two Christmas Eve services live too. But instead I have football and ONE Christmas card.
I do have my commissary with the "sausage" and cheese I ordered. I have to be sure not to pig out too much. For some reason I ordered four M&M’s which will only allow me one a day from Friday through Monday. I do have two Kit Kats, but I did not order the cookies. I do not know what I was thinking.
Of course I cannot just run out to 7-Eleven and pick up some more party supplies. Some soda would be nice, but as your Dad used to say, "It’s poor man’s Gatorade for me." Ah, where is the eggnog?
I now realize that I have essentially had a clogged nose since I arrived here. Maybe I should try to get some antibiotic since it may be a sinus infection. Maybe I am just allergic to jail! Ha ha!
Today on TV we had Jerry Springer and Maury Povich shows for four straight hours. I managed to doze off for a couple of hours only to awaken to the football game. So now that chow is done, the next thing will be our Rec at 7:30 PM. I will probably just take a shower and come back and lie down. I am not sure what they will put on TV, but I do not have hope of it being anything worth watching.
So let me read some more. I will also write a thank you note to my parent's friends and I might write a note to Dave. Since he is in Fedville, I need to keep out direct references to what is going on.
It is 11:30 PM or so. and I ate the sausage and cheese. It was not Prosciutto and fresh mozzarella, but it is the thought that counts. Yeah, right.
So now in the silence that occurs here each night I will read and probably finish the last of Killing the Shadows. Christmas Eve reading it is not, but then again it does not really feel much like Christmas right now.
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